Posts tagged Sharing

Concurrent, a provider of video and advertising solutions, will launch its new video application that allows video content to be shared across service providers, enabling subscribers to connect with other i2TV users around the globe.

Concurrent said it will be demonstrating its new commercial video application at this year’s CableLabs Winter Conference to be held from February 28 to March 1 in Atlanta, Ga. At the conference, Concurrent will show users how to record and upload personal video content from a mobile phone to Concurrent’s cloud hosted i2TV platform.

Using the i2TV solution, users can define video sharing profiles and make content available to friends and family for on-demand playback on a variety of consumer devices, including traditional set-top boxes, personal computers and mobile phones.

“Personal video sharing is the first of a new generation of video applications Concurrent is enabling with our cloud based i2TV solution,” James Brickmeier, vice president of Concurrent’s video solutions for cable and telecommunications providers, said in a statement.

“Personal video sharing leverages Concurrent’s strengths in video ingestion, delivery, media data collection and advertising,” he added. “We believe our i2TV cloud hosted solutions offer operators a way to generate new revenue from TV based services as well as differentiate their multi-screen service offering from a growing array of competitors without the need for expensive infrastructure upgrades.”

Concurrent’s i2TV system is a cloud-based, online video platform that enables premium content, user-generated content (UGC), and “Best of the Web” content, as well as hyper-local and national advertising content to be ingested and delivered to any device as linear broadcast or VOD programming. i2TV serves as a foundation for next generation video applications targeted at service provider and content provider markets.

Concurrent is a global company with offices in North America, Europe and Asia. Recently the company was awarded a patent no. 7,877,468 from the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for technology that is foundational for network DVR services. The patented technology solves the challenges of resource-allocation and management for the storage and distribution of content from a centralized, network-based system.

Jai C.S. is a contributing editor for TMCnet. To read more of Jai’s articles, please visit his columnist page.

NEW YORK, NY — (Marketwire) — 02/04/11 — Thwapr, Inc. (OTCBB: THWI), a leading social mobile video and photo sharing service, today announced it has added a geotagging feature so users and brands can include location data for their videos and photos.

“Sharing videos from mobile devices will become a standard, integral part of a mobile, social lifestyle and experience,” said Leigh Newsome, senior vice president of products. “Adding new features such as geotagging further enhances the experience and brings location awareness for digital media to mobile phones, tablets, and computers. No more ‘where did you shoot this video?’ questions, it’s all right there on a map shown along with your video and photo. Thwapr brings this capability not just to consumers — via GPS savvy mobile phones, digital camera, and camcorders — but also to brands such as concert tours (show tour locations), sports teams (where the team played).”

Geotagging is the process of adding geographical identification metadata to various media such as photographs and videos. Geotagging can help users find a wide variety of location-specific information.

This feature enhances mobile video and photo experiences by adding location information to help remember an experience or when searching for groups of videos and photos from for example, a family vacation or event. Geotagging can also provide more context for users when sharing on Facebook or Twitter and, on some media platforms, will show other media relevant to a given location.

Thwapr is a fun, easy and reliable way to share videos and photos to and from Web-enabled mobile phones. Compatible with more than 300 different kinds of handsets, Thwapr’s solution delivers a universal link via SMS, email, or QR codes where users can enjoy high-quality videos or view photos.

About Thwapr, Inc. Founded in 2007, Thwapr is a mobile video sharing service that allows brands to mobilize and monetize content, extending its distribution reach while delivering the highest possible quality and user experience regardless of device, network or carrier. Founded by digital video pioneers from Apple, Avid and MTV, Thwapr’s patent-pending “Share to Phone” technology is revolutionizing mobile video, while also revitalizing traditional media by incorporating branded mobile video into print, broadcast, billboards and radio. A cloud-based solution that does not require a download or app, Thwapr is making mobile video sharing easy, fast and fun for the hundreds of millions of consumers with Web-enabled mobile devices. To see a video about Thwapr, text the stock symbol, THWI, to 757575 or visit http://corp.thwapr.com. Also, make sure to follow us at www.twitter.com/thwapr or become a fan at www.facebook.com/thwapr.

Notice Regarding Forward-Looking Statements This news release contains “forward-looking statements” as that term is defined in Section 27A of the United States Securities Act of 1933, as amended and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Statements in this press release which are not purely historical are forward-looking statements and include any statements regarding beliefs, plans, expectations or intentions regarding the future. Such forward-looking statements include, among other things, the development, costs and results of new business opportunities. Actual results could differ from those projected in any forward-looking statements due to numerous factors. Such factors include, among others, the inherent uncertainties associated with new products and development stage companies. These forward-looking statements are made as of the date of this news release, and we assume no obligation to update the forward-looking statements, or to update the reasons why actual results could differ from those projected in the forward-looking statements. Although we believe that any beliefs, plans, expectations and intentions contained in this press release are reasonable, there can be no assurance that any such beliefs, plans, expectations or intentions will prove to be accurate. Investors should consult all of the information set forth herein and should also refer to the risk factors disclosure outlined in Thwapr’s annual report on Form 10-K for the most recent fiscal year, Thwapr’s quarterly reports on Form 10-Q and other periodic reports filed from time-to-time with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Washington – The co-chairs of the Congressional Privacy Caucus have sent a letter to Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg, seeking detailed information on the company’s recent announcement that it would share users’ addresses and mobile phone numbers with developers. Reps. Ed Markey (D-Mass.) and Joe Barton (R-Texas) pose 11 questions to Zuckerberg in their letter, asking how Facebook developed and vetted the feature; what led the company to suspend roll out after it had been announced; how the company is adjusting the feature prior to re-enabling it; how consumers will be able to opt-out; and whether consideration was given to risks in children and teenagers disclosing their addresses and mobile phone numbers.

The letter also pointedly asks, “Why is Facebook, after previously acknowledging in a letter to Reps. Markey and Barton that sharing a Facebook User ID could raise user concerns, subsequently considering sharing access to even more sensitive personal information such as home addresses and phone numbers to third parties?”

“Facebook needs to protect the personal information of its users to ensure that Facebook doesn’t become Phonebook,” Rep. Markey said in a statement.

“The computer — especially with sites like Facebook — is now a virtual front door to your house allowing people access to your personal information. You deserve to look through the peep hole and decide who you are letting in,” Rep. Barton added.

Zuckerberg and Facebook were given until Feb. 23 to respond to the lawmakers’ queries.

Facebook third-party application developers have been granted access to home addresses and mobile phone numbers of users, it has been warned.

Although members have to allow third-party applications to access such data, Sophos said the move by the social network could leave users in more danger from “rogue apps.”

These apps can be found across Facebook, often posting spam to users’ walls or linking to surveys which will earn the scammers money through commission.

Others have even tricked users into handing over their mobile numbers.

“Now, shady app developers will find it easier than ever before to gather even more personal information from users,” said Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at Sophos, in a blog.

“You can imagine, for instance, that bad guys could set up a rogue app that collects mobile phone numbers and then uses that information for the purposes of SMS spamming or sells on the data to cold-calling companies.”

The move will also open up more avenues for cyber criminals to steal someone’s identity.

“It won’t take long for scammers to take advantage of this new facility, to use for their own criminal ends,” Cluley added.

“Wouldn’t it [be] better if only app developers who had been approved by Facebook were allowed to gather this information? Or – should the information be necessary for the application – wouldn’t it be more acceptable for the app to request it from users, specifically, rather than automatically grabbing it?”

At the time of publication, Facebook had not responded to a request for comment on the issue.

Koobface spreading

A variety of threats can be found on Facebook and Websense has warned a fresh Koobface scam has spread across the social network.

The illicit initiative has sent out direct messages from compromised accounts. One tactic employed by the cyber criminals was obfuscation of a malicious URL linked to in each message.

“Another tactic is the use of open redirects on the facebook.com domain itself. This gives the URL a more credible look (social engineering), as well as helping it pass basic security checks,” Websense warned in a blog.

“Usually, Facebook alerts users if they’re about to browse to a link outside of its domains, but no alert is triggered in this case.”

The Windows Phone 7 (WP7) smartphone, which is being showcased at IFA Berlin, is expected to be out early Q4 this year, but specific availability details were not released at the time of writing.

According to LG, the preinstalled feature will let users “flick” content such as high-definition videos, pictures and music via Wi-Fi to their TV or home theater systems using DLNA. The Digital Living Network Alliance uses a common standard for interoperability between certified devices and member companies include Motorola, Nokia, Samsung and Sony Ericsson. With this feature, the user can send multimedia content directly from the phone’s media gallery without having to exit the application.

An LG spokesperson told CNET Asia via email that details on the software and hardware requirements will be shared at a later date, but said that the sharing feature is compatible with its existing DLNA-compliant devices such as the LG Infinia TV and Chocolate phone.

With Microsoft locking down components, end-to-end experience and other specifications for Windows Phone 7 devices, the file-sharing feature could be a way for phone manufacturers to differentiate themselves. The Redmond company on September 1 released the revamped operating system to original equipment manufacturers (OEM) and service provider partners in preparation for a year-end release. LG, together with Samsung and HTC, are expected to be among the launch partners for WP7.

The upcoming file-sharing feature on the Optimus 7 isn’t LG’s only attempt at simplifying the use of wireless technologies. The Air Sync, which was introduced with the Mini (GD880), lets users synchronize data such as contacts, calendar appointments and photos between the handset and PC over the air. The company plans to include this feature in the Optimus (GT540), Optimus Q and Optimus Z, as well as in other upcoming handsets.

According to a recent Gartner report, LG shipped approximately 293,000 mobile phones worldwide in the last quarter. This represented a market share of 9 percent, a wide gap from Samsung and Nokia, which had market shares of 20.1 percent and 34.2 percent, respectively.

Thwapr is catering to a younger generation of online video viewers by providing video that’s social, personal, and immediate. While the company started in 2007, it’s now finding impressive success with its formula, as shown by three music-related announcements all made yesterday. Perhaps Thwapr just needed phones and networks to catch up before it could take off.

If you haven’t heard of it, Thwapr is a free cell phone video service that doesn’t require an app to work. Users record a video with their cell phone’s video camera, then use e-mail or their phone’s browser to upload the video to their Thwapr account. Thwaper stores and converts all uploaded videos. Once users have uploaded a video, they can share it via a text message.

People receiving a Thwapr video will see the format and bitrate that works best with their phone. The service lets people share videos and not worry about formats or long downloads.

The service will be used at two music tours this summer. Viewers can get concert highlights and behind-the-scenes reports from the Vans Warped Tour by texting “warped” to 757575. They can get video updates and fan reactions from the Rockstar Energy Mayhem Festival by texting “mayhem” to that same number. There’s no fee to use Thwapr. Instead, videos are ad-supported. A press representative said that not all videos currently carry ads.

The Brooklyn-based Lordz is the first band to use Thwapr. The band has Thwapr’s Share to Phone technology on its site, letting viewers share the band’s music videos to mobile phones or social networks.

“Thwapr is an amazing way for us to stay in touch with fans before and after shows in a way no one else is able to match, and the Share to Phone feature helps our existing fans socialize and share our music with their friends in a simple and easy way,” says Lordz founder Mike “Mr. Kaves” McLeer.